Perthshire - 264 places to stay

There is a fine seat on the top of the Knock Hill at Crieff , one of
Perthshire's most attractive little towns. It's only a few minutes' climb
through the old woodlands, above the streets and busy shops. From this
heathery top you can see what Perthshire is all about - partly because
there is one of those useful circular landmark indicators conveniently
placed here, but also because of the glorious panorama from this Highland
edge viewpoint.

Look to the south and east to view the broad lands of Strathearn as they
roll out, the grain fields edged by tall trees - a rich and comfortable
landscape. But west and north the prospect is very different. The hills
beyond the Highland line - a natural fault line - loom on the horizon.
Perthshire embraces both Highland and Lowland. Close to where the two
Scotlands meet, a cluster of little resort-towns have grown up: not just
Crieff, but Comrie further up the strath, where the hills close in;
Dunkeld , amongst the tall trees, where Beatrix Potter wove local characters
into her tales for children; Aberfeldy with its watermill, handsome bridge
and birchwoods praised in song by Robert Burns ; then there is Pitlochry,
set, some say, right in the very centre of Scotland.

It is from these places, that you can take advantage of another attractive
feature of the area. This one came about a long, long time before the first
tourists (in fact, long before the first people of any kind hereabouts).
Ancient glaciers grinding eastwards from an ice-sheet on Rannoch Moor
scoured out many of today's glens and valleys. Perthshire touring is a
special delight, as north-south hill roads drop into these long loch-filled
glens - Loch Rannoch, Loch Tay or Loch Earn, for example. All you have to
do is study your road-map and choose the number of loops you want to cover
in a day's tootling about! That way you can enjoy the Black Wood of
Rannoch, a stretch of native pinewood on the south side of Loch Rannoch
(and perhaps even see a capercaillie), or hire a boat at Kenmore at the
east end of Loch Tay, or enjoy the peerless Queen's View above Loch Tummel.

If mountains, lochs and little upland roads off the beaten track are the
backdrop for Highland Perthshire, then when you add on the sheer
serendipity of other things to see, the area becomes especially attractive
as a short breaks destination. Because, no matter where you base yourself,
from Kinross by Loch Leven to the south to Blairgowrie by the berry-fields
on the edge of Strathmore, you can be sure to find a string of interesting
places on some easy-day circular journey.

These places might include castles - so you can enjoy Blair Castle ,
guarding the old routes north by Blair Atholl; or Castle Menzies, looking
every inch a Scottish stronghold, tucked by the woodlands at Weem; or take
the boat over to Loch Leven Castle, to hear the romantic tale of Mary,
Queen of Scots . More of Scotland's heritage can be experienced at Scone
Palace. As well as the magnificent collections of porcelain furniture
ivories and other treasures within this castellated palace of the Earls of
Mansfield, Moot Hill within the grounds was the ancient crowning place of
the Scottish kings from at least the 8th century onwards.

As well as historic sites, you may find a sign for a distillery, so you can
compare and contrast the product of the oldest Highland malt distillery at
Glenturret, near Crieff, with, say, the equally fine single malt produced
in Pitlochry by Edradour, the smallest distillery in Scotland. However,
castles and whisky are only the start of the list.

There are gardens to explore: Branklyn with its blue poppies hidden just a
few minutes from the centre of Perth , or Bolfracks, continuing the
peat-loving Himalayan theme with its rhododendrons and azaleas. Contrasting
these wild and natural plantings is the extraordinary layout of Drummond
Castle Gardens, where formal topiary, fountains and terracing are laid out
like a giant green chessboard. (This is one of Scotland's largest formal
gardens. You may have seen it already as a setting for one of the scenes in
the film Rob Roy , with Liam Neeson.)

Finally, no trip hereabouts is complete without spending some time in the
main town of Perth. A handsome place, built on a grid of streets by the
banks of the Tay. Its origins go all the way back to a Roman fort by the
fording place, known as 'Bertha'. Today, there are plenty of shops with
High Street names as well as specialist outlets selling everything from
Scottish crafts to local pearls. (The Tay was once famous for its pearls.)
In-town attractions include everything from an excellent repertory theatre
to the art of the glass-blower as demonstrated at Caithness Glass. Add on a
great choice of eating places and it becomes hard to think of a better base
to explore the true heartlands of Scotland.